On a Valentine's Day
by bigbill16
Summary: Despite many people viewing them as the perfect couple, Hikari breaks up with Takeru just days before her school's Valentine's Day dance. Distraught over the question of what love is supposed to feel like, she finds herself with only a day left to find a date, and an unexpected solution to her problem.
1. Heartbreak

**Author's note: So I'm kind of taking the American custom of doing school dances and applying it to the setting of Japan. I don't know if they do school dances or not. I wasn't exactly striving for cultural accuracy. I prefer using the Japanese names for the characters, so for those who aren't familiar: Hikari = Kari, Takeru = T.K., Taichi = Tai, Yamato = Matt, Tailmon = Gatomon. Also, the italicized portion symbolizes a flashback. And of course, I do not own any of these characters... Except for Yumiko, the one I made up.**

Chapter 1 Heartbreak

Hikari groaned as her alarm went off for a fifth time. With her head still buried firmly in her pillow, she shot out her left arm and violently jabbed at her cell phone until the obnoxious beeping ceased. As she had done four times already that morning, she rolled over and stared at the ceiling, knowing full well that she needed to get herself out of bed.

As she had also done four times already that morning, she rolled back over and buried herself in her pillow and sheets, which had become a prison cell more than anything the past two days.

She knew she shouldn't be acting like this; she was furious at herself for acting like this. But her body simply wouldn't allow her to do anything but lie in bed. Against her better judgment, she closed her eyes and reenacted the same scene she had played in her mind a thousand times since Wednesday evening.

 **. . . . .**

 _She nervously checked her watch for the fifth time; quarter past eight, like they had agreed. She nervously wrapped her knuckles on the bridge that went over the stream that ran through the middle of Shinjuku Park._

 _"Hikari?" came a voice from behind her. She hadn't been expecting her boyfriend to approach from the same side she did, and therefore shrieked while quickly turning around._

 _"Takeru," she exhaled, knowing it was him but still relieved to see it wasn't a stranger. "Totally thought you'd come from the other side."_

 _"I had to run some errands on your side of town." He gave that warm smile Hikari was usually so delighted to see before briskly closing the gap between them and clasping her left hand with his right. "So," he said after a brief moment of silence, "it sounded like you had something urgent to talk about."_

 _Hikari found herself wildly trying to piece her words together in her head. Just that morning she had been rehearsing her lines to Tailmon, but now with Takeru standing in front of her holding her hand, everything she had memorized flew out of her brain like paper in the wind._

 _"I… I wouldn't say that it's urgent." It was merely meant to stall for time so she could recollect her thoughts._

 _Takeru gave a slight frown in response. "Come on, Hikari. I think I've known you long enough to tell when something's urgent from your tone."_

 _"I think we should break up!" She hadn't meant to blurt it out to the world, but it was the only way to dislodge the words from her throat. It was like removing a Band-Aid; she had to just rip it off in one motion. "I-I'm sorry, Takeru, I didn't mean to, I just…." Again the words fell into a great chasm and she found herself searching for the right things to say._

 _"It's okay," Takeru said warmly, gripping her hand tighter. She was happy to see he hadn't stormed off in anger or sadness. "You don't need to feel nervous; just take a deep breath."_

 _Hikari lightly nodded her head and followed his instruction, taking in three deep breaths before finally feeling comfortable for the first time since arriving at the park. She turned back to Takeru, now with a clear mind, ready to give him the explanation he deserved._

 _"I started thinking about it a couple weeks ago. I'm not sure what made me start thinking about it, but the thought crept into my head nonetheless. Takeru, you've been my friend since I was eight years old. For seven years, you've been my closest friend, and nothing in the world will ever change that." She paused briefly to organize the next part of her speech._

 _"Everyone was expecting it when we announced we were dating eight months ago. After all the adventures we had been through, and all the time we'd spent together. How could there possibly be anyone else out there for me? And of course everyone in our group was telling us how it was always meant to be, and how we were the perfect couple."_

 _"The same things they were saying about my brother and Sora," Takeru chimed in, starting to piece together what Hikari was saying._

 _"Exactly," Hikari exclaimed, happy that Takeru was following along, since she wouldn't blame him if he wasn't. "And then that ended a couple months ago. It's like, you know how it feels when we're together? Did that feeling ever change when we started dating?"_

 _Takeru gave a slight smile in response. Not a smile of happiness, but one that signified he understood the message. "No, I can't say it ever did."_

 _Hikari gave a slight nod in agreement. "It didn't change for me, either." She paused again because not even she knew exactly what she wanted to say next. "And I'm pretty sure that's not right. I can't really explain it, but I feel like being with someone you love should feel different than being with your childhood best friend."_

 _And then it happened. The tears she was trying so hard to choke back came pouring out, first in sprinkles, and then in a constant stream. "I'm sorry! At this point it just sounds like I'm making excuses."_

 _Her sudden outburst was quickly subdued, however, as she found herself enveloped by Takeru's embrace. "Calm down," he gently whispered. "Stop blaming yourself." She stared at him dumbfounded; he had every reason in the world to be upset at her and yet he was trying to soothe her._

 _"You're not spouting nonsense," Takeru said, once Hikari's tears had mostly stopped flowing. "I understand what you're saying because, well honestly, I've felt it too." He backed away from her until he was arm's length away, and took a deep breath before continuing. "I also started contemplating that something in our relationship didn't quite feel right. But every time that thought snuck into my head, I pushed it aside cause I didn't want to admit that maybe it just wasn't meant to be."_

 _"But why not?" she cried out, furiously wiping away the returning tears. "You've been my best friend for seven years. You know me better than anyone. I don't understand why something doesn't feel right."_

 _"No matter what your brain thinks, Hikari, it can't tell your heart how to feel. Whatever it is that we feel is missing, it's a feeling that comes from within that I don't think either of us can really explain."_

 _Hikari finally finished wiping away the last of her tears as she attempted to fully grasp what Takeru was saying. "I guess you're right… thanks," she said, smiling as she leaned in to give him a hug. Before she got too comfortable, however, she remembered that there was one final hurdle to get over._

 _"By the way," she spoke timidly, "I'm sorry about the rotten timing."_

 _For the first time that evening, Takeru truly looked perplexed. "Rotten timing?"_

 _"You know, with the Valentine's Day dance this weekend," she said, still feeling awkward about having to bring up the predicament. "I just… I was afraid if I didn't get this out now, I was never really going to have a chance to say it before things got out of hand. Unfortunately that entailed telling you three days before the dance."_

 _Takeru let out what a sort of nervous chuckle. "Gosh, this conversation made me completely forget about that." He took a couple steps back and looked down at her. "I guess now it'd be a bit awkward to go together as friends."_

 _"Kinda what I was thinking… Besides, that girl Yumiko in the back of our math class is always talking about you. You'd make her dreams come true if you asked her to the dance."_

 _He met her with a curious glance. "You sure you're okay with that? What about you?"_

 _She responded with a playful push to the shoulder. "Don't worry about me; I'll find someone to go with."_

 _A genuine smile appeared on Takeru's face, the first time that happened to either person since the conversation began. "Good, cause I'm gonna give you hell if I show up to that dance with Yumiko and you're not there."_

 _Now it was Hikari's turn to have a genuine smile on her face. "Oh, already confident she's gonna say 'yes,' are you?"_

 _"Hey, you're the one who said she's crazy about me. I just assumed it was a done deal."_

 _The pair of Digidestined laughed for what felt like years; they needed it after what they had just put themselves through. They embraced once more, looked each other in the eyes, and kissed each other briefly for the last time. "Just remember," Hikari said, after pulling her lips away, "this doesn't change anything. You're still my best friend… and you always will be."_

 _"Forever," Takeru responded, as he stuck out his pinky. Hikari intertwined her pinky with his as they sealed their pact of friendship._

 **. . . . .**

Even though she knew in her heart it was the right thing to do, Hikari was still reeling from the breakup. If her best friend of seven years wasn't the right match for her, who out there in the world was? And what exactly was the special feeling that her relationship with Takeru was missing? How would she know it when that feeling actually hit her? These were the questions that had been driving her mad the past two days.

Her attention quickly turned to the door when she heard three hard knocks. "Yeah?" she croaked, her voice coming out much weaker than she expected.

"Gosh, you sound awful," came the voice of her older brother, Taichi. "I've got some hot soup for you. Can I come in?"

Hikari nodded in response to avoid having to speak again, but then realized that there was no way her brother could see her physical gesture. "Yeah, sure," she merely groaned.

The door swung open slowly and she was greeted by her brother's face, which she hadn't seen in two days. "Well, it's good to know you're at least not dead," he said wryly, taking a seat at the chair placed a couple feet away from her bed.

"Hard to tell sometimes, actually." Hikari's Digimon, Tailmon, hopped up on to the bed and laid down next to her partner. "She moves so little I have to check every now and then just to make sure she's breathing."

Taichi couldn't help but chuckle. "I'm surprised you let her get away with it."

"My coercing can only go so far." She meowed, stretched her legs, spun in a circle and reclaimed her position next to Hikari. "I've never dealt with her when she's this stubborn."

Taichi scratched his head nervously, worried about how Tailmon described his sister's mood. "That bad, huh? Well, why don't we settle this the old-fashioned way: by talking about it?"

Hikari groaned in response. She had a feeling this was the ultimate goal of her brother.

"Come on, Hikari, you can't stay cooped up in this bed forever. I know it stings, but you're gonna have to move on with life at some point. Takeru hasn't been missing school and staying in bed for two days."

Some life finally sprang back into Hikari as she quickly turned and looked up at her brother in shock. She hadn't mentioned to anyone what had occurred two nights ago; she had convinced her parents that she was simply ill.

"Come on, sis, don't insult me like that," he chuckled. "I'm your brother; it's my job to know these things. And even if Yamato hadn't told me what happened, I still would've figured it out."

Hikari was now sitting up straight and stretching her arms in an attempt to get life back into them. "How so?" she asked curiously.

"I know what heartache feels like, sis," he said, tousling her hair in a loving manner. "And I know how someone acts in response to it."

Hikari nodded her head in agreement as she thought back to how devastated Taichi was when he first found out Yamato and Sora were dating. "Guess it was foolish of me to try and hide it from you."

"Damn right, it was," he chuckled, standing up.

"It's just… I'm mad at myself for not being happy. How could I not be happy with Takeru? We were practically meant for each other." She paused, thinking Taichi was going to chime in, but continued when he remained silent. "But I just couldn't shake that nagging feeling in my heart. That feeling that we were meant to be best friends for life… but not lovers. And eventually that feeling just took over."

Taichi sat back down in the chair so he could look his sister in the eyes. "So? You trusted your heart, Hikari. That's nothing to be ashamed of. And I'm not gonna pretend like I'm some expert on love just because I got a girlfriend three weeks ago. But you will know when you find that someone out there for you. It may be someone you have everything in common with. It may be someone you have nothing in common with. But you'll know it's the right person when you're with them. You just gotta have hope."

For the first time since the breakup, Hikari allowed a smile to make its way on to her visage. "Well, you're no Shakespeare, but you still know how to cheer me up. You'll always be the best at that." She leaned forward and gave him a loving kiss on the cheek.

"Ugh, gross," he joked, wiping furiously at his face. He left the bowl of soup on her night stand and headed for the door, delighted to hear her laughing behind him. "Oh, one last thing," he said, stopping in the doorway. "Takeru has upheld his end of the bargain, and will be at the dance this Saturday with Yumiko. So I suggest you leave the room if you wanna go with someone other than Tailmon."

Hikari turned to look at her Digimon companion, who was smiling in response to the quip from Taichi. She had completely forgotten about her pact with Takeru to show up to the dance with a date.

"Why don't you start your adventure with a run down to the supermarket? We could use some milk, and your legs could use some stretching. I'm certain they're stiffer than boards at this point." And with that, he made a waving gesture with his hand as he disappeared around the corner.

 **To be continued...**

 **This was originally meant to be a one-shot, but my first draft was pushing 12 pages with plenty of story still left (way too long for a one-shot in my opinion). Couldn't find a good way to cut it down, so I scrapped it, and am now rewriting it with multiple chapters. Unlike my other stories, where my motivation fluctuates, I am very committed to completing this one. I have the blueprint in my head for what I want, now I just have to put it to paper. Anyway, enough babbling... Hope you enjoyed it; please R &R. I heavily encourage criticism, as long as it's constructive. And for those wondering where the hell Daisuke is, patience... he'll enter the story eventually.**


	2. Unexpected Run-In

**Author's note: For those who are familiar with the dub, Daisuke = Davis.**

Chapter 2 Unexpected Run-In

Hikari gingerly made her way out the door of her apartment. Like her brother Taichi had suggested, she was having a hard time getting her legs to respond to what her brain wanted. Right now it literally felt like she was trying to operate her body while walking on stilts.

"When is this going to stop being such a chore?" she questioned out loud as she stumbled over the threshold into the railing on the balcony. Fortunately she was able to throw out her hands in order to catch herself before colliding head first.

"Well," she said, after regaining her balance, "I certainly can't dance with anyone if I can't get the feeling back in my legs." She continued making her way down the hallway to the stairwell. Every single step felt like an injection of fire being shot through the bottom of her foot up to her thigh. Her leg would then burn for the next five seconds and fade just as she was taking her next step. By the time she made it to the stairs, her movement finally resembled something more akin to walking.

Staring down her new adversary, she cautiously proceeded down the steps while gripping the handle on the side. However she misjudged her third step and panic filled her body as she plummeted forward toward the hard concrete. She closed her eyes, threw her hands in front of her, and hoped for the best. The hard landing never came, however.

"Hey, why don't you watch where you're going?" came a very displeased voice from under her. Hikari immediately recognized the voice and opened her eyes to find herself just inches away from the face of Daisuke Motomiya.

She could tell from the look on his face that he had not been aware of who had landed on him. She watched his face turn beet red as he sputtered trying to find words to say.

"Hikari… I-I-I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was you." At this point, Hikari had rolled off of him, but was still on the ground. Seeing this, Daisuke hastily tried to get to his feet in order to lend a helping hand to her. They had fallen on a patch of ice, though, and his feet slid several times before he crashed hard back on the ground.

Hikari did her best to not giggle at his attempted chivalry. It was like when they were first in the digital world, and he would do anything to impress her.

She looked around and relocated the steps she had stumbled down. Reaching over and using them for leverage, she slowly made her way back to her feet. Firmly gripping the railing with her left hand, she stretched out and extended her right hand to Daisuke.

Daisuke looked up and returned her gesture with his usual sheepish grin. In trying to be the chivalrous knight, the tables had turned and now he was being helped up.

"Thanks for that," said Daisuke. "Was hoping to run into some familiar faces today, but not literally."

"Sorry," Hikari said, feeling guilty about the whole incident. "You're not hurt, are you?"

"Nah, it's gonna take a little more than that to cause some damage to me." His face betrayed his words as he grimaced while trying to stretch his back. The facial expression he received from Hikari let him know she wasn't buying it. "I promise, I'm fine," he said, not wanting her to feel bad about the incident. "I'll walk it off on the way home. Speaking of which, have you seen my other bag?"

It wasn't until Daisuke mentioned bags that Hikari noticed he was lugging around a fairly large suitcase with him. A few feet to her left in the snow lay a beige duffel bag with a slight bulge in the middle of it. "What's with the luggage?" she asked as she reached over to pick up the bag. She tossed it to him while still holding on to the railing of the staircase. "You going on vacation?"

"The opposite, actually," he responded while slinging his bag back over his shoulder. "Guess I wasn't missed that much in history class, huh?" he said with a smile.

"Sorry, my head hasn't all been there the past few days." She took a long pause while staring at him with his bags. A thought had popped into her head, and she was debating whether to act on it or not. "Hey, Daisuke!" she blurted out before she could really stop herself.

Daisuke was surprised by the sudden outburst; he almost slipped and fell once more. "Something wrong?" he asked, now having tensed up.

"Um… want some help unpacking?" She was upset she couldn't think of anything else, but she figured it would be in her best interests to find a friend to talk to. Daisuke was usually a strong candidate with his unwavering upbeat attitude.

Daisuke gave her a look of curiosity and held it for several seconds. "You… want to help me unpack?"

"I mean…" she started, not sure herself exactly what she wanted. "Look, it's been a rough week, and I _really_ could use some company… you know, besides Tailmon. Besides, I feel like it's been forever since we've talked to each other."

Daisuke wasn't quite sure how to respond to the request. Back when he was traveling to the digital world with Hikari five years ago, he would have given his left arm to have her invite herself over to his house. And now that he had (mostly) gotten over his schoolboy crush on her, he wasn't quite sure how to react. "Um, yeah, sure. I mean why not, right? Plus, my parents took a little trip of their own, so they won't be back until late Sunday. So I guess I'm also in need of some company."

He gave such a huge, beaming smile that Hikari couldn't help but smile back. "Hold on a second." She turned around and gave the loudest whistle she could muster, hoping it could be heard by her cat-like partner in her room. After about five seconds, the white digimon came bounding around the corner, hopped over the railing, and landed safely in Hikari's arms.

"Hey there, Daisuke. Long time, no see." Tailmon purred affectionately while rubbing her head against her partner's chest before jumping on to her left shoulder.

"So we're abandoning the milk run," Hikari said to her companion.

"I can see that," she said with a playful tone in her voice. "Well, this seems much more fun anyway."

"Veemon will certainly be overjoyed now," said Daisuke, speaking of his digimon partner. "He hasn't gotten to see you in months, Tailmon… Hope you still don't find him too irritating?"

"I never used the word irritating," said Tailmon, as Hikari chuckled at her partner's attempt to decline the accusation. "He's just a little too… enthusiastic sometimes."

"Well that's not surprising, considering who he gets it from," said Hikari, directing her gaze toward Daisuke. Daisuke simply shrugged as he put on a big, sheepish smile. The happy banter between the three was put to a halt by a harsh gust of wind, as Daisuke and Hikari violently shivered in response.

"How about we take this back to Daisuke's house before you both freeze to death?" suggested Tailmon. The two curtly nodded and made their way down the street in a swift manner, being careful not to slip on the scattered ice patches.

With Daisuke a few steps ahead of Hikari, Tailmon took the opportunity to run down her partner's arm and give her a knowing smile. Hikari knew what her partner was thinking about, but she tried to ignore it and just focus on getting to Daisuke's house.

 **. . . . .**

Daisuke marched up the three steps leading to his house. He scrambled through his pockets trying to frantically find the key, knowing that would be the one problem to suddenly arise in this current situation. After recovering it from one of his jacket pockets, he abruptly stopped as he went to unlock the front door.

"What's wrong," asked Hikari, observing the peculiar behavior.

"Nothing," he responded. "It's just… he gets really excited when I'm gone for a little while. So I'm getting prepared."

Hikari still gave him a strange glance as he carefully turned the key and walked through the doorway.

"Veemon, I'm ho-" He wasn't able to finish his statement as a small, blue dinosaur digimon came running down the stairs and tackled Daisuke to the floor.

"You're back, you're back, you're back!" the blue-and-white digimon exclaimed. "Next time you're gonna be gone that long, you take me with you!"

"Veemon, it was only a week; not even." Daisuke had to try with all his might to get the words out due to his digimon standing on his upper chest area. "Can I be allowed to breathe, please?"

Hikari chuckled at the interaction between the two, which alerted Veemon to their presence for the first time.

"Hikari! Tailmon!" he shouted in glee. Daisuke held back his laughter at how much happier his partner was upon seeing the white cat-like digimon.

"Um, so living room's in here if you wanted to sit and chat," Daisuke said, seeing how Veemon was lost in conversation with Tailmon already.

Hikari nodded in agreement and made her way past the two digimon into the living room. She immediately spotted a loveseat located in front of a fireplace and sat down. "So, where'd you just get back from?" she asked, realizing he had yet to divulge that information.

"Brazil," he responded, briskly throwing his luggage out of the way into the adjacent room. "I was there for a soccer tournament."

"No way. I know which one you're talking about. You got invited to that?" Hikari knew he was referring to an international amateur soccer tournament held in Brazil, consisting of the greatest young players from around the world. Her brother had always dreamed of one day getting to participate in it.

"Well, sort of," he chuckled as he took a spot on the loveseat, but was very careful to leave some space between him and Hikari. "Ken got invited."

"Of course," she responded, remembering how talented their friend Ken was.

"But," he continued, "Ken's been to that tournament the last four years. So once he heard who his replacement would be should he not go, he chose to politely decline the offer." As hard as he tried, Daisuke couldn't keep himself from showing his grin that stretched from ear to ear.

"That's awesome, Daisuke!" Hikari exclaimed. "Be sure to let Taichi know. He'd be so proud of you."

"I know, right? After all, he's the one who helped train me to where I am today. Both on the pitch and in the digital world." They sat in silence for a moment following his last statement. He looked over to see Veemon still deep in conversation with Tailmon. With the uncomfortable silence starting to get to him, he hastily chose a topic to move on to. Unfortunately for him, it was the wrong topic.

"So, how's everything with you and Takeru?" Without even waiting for a response, Daisuke could tell he had asked the wrong question. It felt as if the air had suddenly been vacuumed out of the room. He looked over and saw Tailmon now watching the two of them with a nervous look on her face. "That-that's what's been bothering you lately, isn't it?" Daisuke was silently cursing himself a hundred times over for his mistake. He should have known. He should have interpreted the signs. "Hikari, I'm so sorry-"

"It's fine," she interrupted, almost too promptly. But it was anything but fine. Things had been going so well, and she had actually forgotten about everything that had transpired the past two days since meeting up with Daisuke. But all that came painfully crashing back upon the mere mention of the incident. She suddenly found herself wanting to burrow back into her bed at home in her room and try to sleep away all her sorrows.

"It's getting late; I should be going," she said in a monotone as she swiftly got up from the couch and headed over to the front door. Tailmon sadly followed suit behind her with her tail dragging across the floor.

"Hikari, wait!" Daisuke screamed as he shot up and raced across the living room and over to the entrance. "I'm sorry, Hikari, I didn't know. Please don't go!"

She was already partially out the door with one hand as she felt herself getting pulled back by her other hand. She didn't fight the resistance, but simply stood halfway through the threshold. "Why are you so worried about keeping me from leaving?" she again spoke in a monotone.

Daisuke was at first befuddled by the question, but quickly recovered. "Because I'm your friend, Hikari. And I can tell you're hurting badly right now. And it hurts me to see you like this because you always have the brightest smile out of anyone."

Hikari turned her head around and looked Daisuke right in the eyes. She had seen that intensity before in their past adventures. They signified a boy on a mission, and that look meant Daisuke was intent on making sure he was there to help her out. It was the same look he had when he refused to give up on Ken. "No matter how long ago our adventures were, you still know how to turn into leader of the digi-destined," she said, giving him a smile.

She emphatically closed the door and made her way back to the couch. She took a seat closer to the middle of the loveseat and patted the spot next to her, signaling him to come and sit down. "I think I'm ready to get this break-up issue off my chest instead of running from it."

Daisuke stood dumbfounded for a second, almost sure that Hikari was going to run out of his house. "Uh, yeah, of course. Let me have it; I've got all the time in the world." He sat down to the right of Hikari, still being sure to leave some space in between them. The two digimon, happy to see the meeting didn't implode, cheerfully raced on to the couch and sat on the lap of their respective partners.

"So," she said, after giving Tailmon time to do her routine of circling and finding the perfect spot, "it all starts Wednesday evening…"

 **. . . . .**

"And that's why I fell on you when leaving my apartment," said Hikari, having just gone through the events of the past two days. "My legs were so stiff from sitting in bed for two days, I didn't have the dexterity to get down the stairs without tripping up." She looked up at him and gave him another grateful smile, "But now I'm kinda glad that little incident happened."

"Yeah, me too," Daisuke responded, soaking in everything that had just been told to him. As much as he hated to admit it when it first happened, Hikari and Takeru did come off as a match made in heaven. It seemed almost surreal that he was now consoling the former after a breakup between the couple.

"And please don't say we were the perfect couple," Hikari said. "I honestly got sick of hearing it while we were dating, and it just makes it more painful hearing it after we've broken up."

"Alright, alright, I won't say it," said Daisuke, softly chuckling at the comment. "You know, I think you've got love pegged as a much more complicated entity than it actually is."

Hikari was surprised to hear this retort from Daisuke, and immediately shot her head up in response. "What do you mean?"

Daisuke now chose his words carefully, trying to say what he truly felt about the issue without doing any more damage to her wounded heart. "It sounds like you guys treated love as this puzzle where you have to get all the right pieces to fit. But love's not really an entity we can control or manipulate." He paused to look at Hikari to see if she was still following along with what he was saying. Once he saw her red-brown eyes staring intently back at his, he continued. "It's more like a force of nature. There's nothing we can do to create the feeling of it. It just sort of… happens." He took a second to rethink his choice of words, but instead decided to double down on his statement. "Yeah… love just happens."

Hikari found herself captivated by her friend's words. Maybe that was the problem from the beginning. Maybe she had been trying to force love to happen, instead of letting it come naturally. "Wow," she exclaimed, "didn't know you had become a romantic poet over the years."

Daisuke laughed at her quip. "I know, I know. It sounds… corny. And I don't exactly have any experience to back up these claims. That's just how I've always perceived love, so I guess I'll wait to see if I'm right or wrong."

Their conversation was interrupted by a loud buzzing sound emanating from Hikari's pocket. She dug into her pocket to see who had texted her, but she already knew the answer. She smiled upon opening up her phone and reading the message. "Taichi wants to know if I got locked in the milk fridge at the store."

Daisuke gave her a confused glance, only for her to further elaborate. "I originally left the house to make a milk run. That was when I ran into you." She smiled as she texted her brother back. She then turned her gaze toward Daisuke, a look he would store in his memory bank forever. It was an obscure mix of gratefulness and guilt.

"I'm sorry, Daisuke, I have to head home for dinner," Hikari said. "I _really_ appreciate you hearing me out. It was just the thing I needed to get me out of this funk."

Daisuke hastily searched for something to say in response. He had been doing fine holding his own up until that point, and now found himself at a loss for words. After running several possible remarks through his head, he eventually spat out, "You're welcome."

Daisuke didn't have to look at Veemon and Tailmon to know that they were both groaning over his moronic statement. He was happy to see Hikari was simply persisting with her beaming smile. She took one final bow of gratitude before turning around and heading for the door.

"Daisuke, what are you doing?" shrieked Veemon in a loud whisper as Hikari and her partner opened the door. "You're missing the best chance you're ever gonna get. Ask her to the dance!"

"The dance?" Daisuke quietly responded. Hikari only briefly mentioned the Valentine's Day dance, so he had completely forgotten about it. Now that his partner brought it up, it did seem like the perfect opportunity. But he shook his head vigorously, knowing it wasn't that simple. Even though he had succeeded in cheering her up, she was still clearly in heartache over the whole situation. Asking her to the dance so soon after a breakup could come off as insensitive. Plus, it was entirely possible that Hikari was still disgusted by the idea of going to a dance with him.

"Daisuke!" his partner urged once more, attempting to shove him off the couch.

"Hikari, wait!" he shouted as he made his way the door, mirroring his actions from before when he stopped her from leaving.

"Yes?" she said, clearly taken aback by his actions.

He paused, realizing he had run after her without actually thinking about what he wanted to say. He thought about asking her to the dance, but once again caved. "It's really cold out there. You'll freeze to death by the time you make it home." Without even knowing what he was doing, he removed his signature fire-emblazoned parka and placed it around her shoulders.

"There you go," he said with a smile. "You should be fine now."

Hikari looked at him incredulously. She couldn't believe that this used to be the same Daisuke Motomiya who would follow her around like a lovesick puppy. It was as if she was all at once noticing the maturing that had happened to him over a five year span. And then, before realizing what she was doing, she sprang forward and enveloped him in a tight embrace.

Daisuke could feel his face turning beet red. What made him blush even more was the redness he noticed on Hikari's face once she backed away. And without saying another word, she repeated herself from before with another quick bow and made her way out the door and down the concrete steps.

With his partner standing dumbfounded, and the harsh wind now working its way into the house, Veemon found the responsibility of closing the door had fallen on him. "I ought to punch you," he said while latching the door. "She actually threw herself at you. And you just stood there?"

Daisuke was finally starting to recover from his stupor brought on by Hikari's sudden hug. "Look, I didn't want to risk undoing everything by asking her to the dance. It's a delicate situation."

"Is it really? Or are you just, how did you word it, turning love into a much more complicated entity than it has to be?"

Daisuke couldn't help but chuckle at his partner's wit. "Gosh, you can be a real pain in the ass sometimes. Guess that's what happens when your personality goes hand-in-hand with mine. I'll tell you what," he said as he made his way up to his room with his partner in tow. "Tomorrow I'll text her and ask to meet up with her. If it still feels like that same energy is there between us, I'll ask her to the dance. Deal?"

"Deal," Veemon said, jumping on to Daisuke and draping his arms around his partner's shoulders. "So in other words, tomorrow's gonna be a fun day for you."

Daisuke let out a hearty laugh as he entered his room, allowing his partner to dive off his back and on to one of his two pillows. "As long as nothing crazy happens, yes, tomorrow should be awesome."

 **To be continued...**

 **So this is around where I was when writing this story the first time as a one-shot, so you can see why I decided to break it down into chapters. Going to see if I can cram everything into the next chapter, but I may need two chapters to finish up the story. Please R &R, heavy emphasis on the respond. Constructive criticism is always encouraged; you can be honest without me having to bust out the burn heal.**


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